Yukio wondered how Urufu was doing, but he admitted that working with Kyoko was a pleasure.

“Noriko's mom is at the walkway with tea and fruit. Help me?” she asked before she made for the road.

She didn't have to. Yukio grinned at his girlfriend, my girlfriend, I love that expression, and nodded. “Sure. We'll be off to get you a small meal,” he shouted to a nearby team and ran after Kyoko. He barely noticed how they waved understanding.

“They're all looking at Kuri-chan,” she said when he caught up with her.

“Uhum,” he agreed. “A nice view during your next break. So that's what Ryu meant when he gave that promise.”

Kyoko laughed and grabbed his hand.

She looked great, filling out her clothes in a way neither Kuri nor Noriko did. Not that he was going to tell. Not yet at least. “You're beautiful,” he said instead.

She stopped for a moment and looked at him. “Do you really think so?” There was something vulnerable in her eyes, and he could see her looking down at the beach where Kuri showed off one otherworldly stance of female perfection after another.

Yukio looked at Kyoko, studied her carefully for some time before saying anything. Now was not the time to give a wrong answer.

A gust of wind blew life into Kyoko's hair, and glimmers of sunshine traced paths between strands of hair and caressed her face. They mixed with pearls of sweat and reflected back on eyelashes and cheekbone. How can you possibly doubt your beauty? You shine with life and you allow me to bask in it. “Yes, I really think so. From the moment I saw you walking beside Kuri I had my eyes on you.”

He felt Kyoko pull his hand around her and grab his other hand in an embrace. “That early?”

“You should know,” he teased. “You tried to make me confess to Kuri you know, that day when I made a fool of myself in your classroom.”

“Unfair,” she whispered into his chest. “Don't make me remember. I'm still ashamed about that.”

It had been the right thing to say. Doubly so, because he felt the truth of his own words echo throughout himself. I love you. You're perfect. “It's still what I feel,” he said and buried his nose into her hair.

They stood like that for a long time. Yukio knew they should run to the road and fetch the bags waiting for them there, but right now he didn't want to let go. A moment of perfect happiness, and he was graced with the fortune to share it with the girl he loved.

In the end it was Kyoko who showed the responsibility he lacked.

“Yukio, Noriko's mom is over there.”

He felt Kyoko's face peeping out under his arm and dared to look around. Noriko's mother did indeed stand beside her car, tapping her fingers on its roof, but she smiled at them. “Mm, guess you're right.”

They let go of their embrace and walked to the car, but Yukio made sure not to let go of the hand he held. Kyoko's fingers hugged his and with every second step she squeezed just a little. You wanted to stay there as well. Thank you!

“Green bottles are tea. The others water. Thermos coffee,” Noriko's mother greeted them with a business like voice that belied her huge grin.

I wish my mother was like that. Then he felt ashamed of himself. His parents tried as hard as they could. They just couldn't stand each other, but none of them had ever allowed that antagonism to disrupt his life. Despite their feelings of mutual dislike they always made sure to pretend they were still a team whenever he was involved. And now I'm lying again. Whenever I'm involved they don't just pretend. Give them the respect they deserve!

“Backpack for me and bags for Yukio?” Kyoko asked.

Her question brought him back to the work ahead. “Yeah, heavy bags for the man so I can be all manly and all that.”

“You? Man?” That one came in tandem from both Noriko's mother and Kyoko. “You wish!” they shouted and laughed.

Guess I deserved that. “Me man, me carry,” he said and flexed some muscles he didn't have.

Kyoko rolled her eyes and shouldered her backpack. “You man, you carry. Now move on before our customers lose their patience.”

Yukio waved to Noriko's mother before grabbing his bags. As they walked back to the beach he felt a pang of regret they prevented him from holding hands with Kyoko, but she made an effort to walk close to him and when they touched hands she grabbed his, pretending to share the burden.

On the beach he saw Kuri running ankle deep in the sea splashing salt water that had to play havoc with the clothes she wore. Yukio wondered a bit about it. None of her clothes made any sense to be worn outdoors, and no girl he knew would have worn anything that heavy for summer. It looked a little like the manga style fantasies he read, and watched whenever they were animated.

That he used to read and watch. He stole a glance at Kyoko. She knew about his preferences when it came to fiction, but he didn't know if she wanted to share them with him, and spending time with her was far more important than the 2D world he liked.

When they came back with drinks and fruit Noriko gave him a look with equal measures of disdain and approval. He smiled back and started to distribute the contents in his bags in accordance with what their customers wanted. Customers, never thought this kind of people would be my customers. He smiled and handed out yet another bottle of tea.

They'll keep staring at that model shoot for a while longer. Guess I should use the time to see what Ryu's up to. Yukio swung his almost empty bags over his shoulder and walked over to Ryu. “I have tea and a few oranges. Water's out.”

Ryu looked up from his touch-pad and smiled. “Thanks,” he said and accepted Yukio's last bottle. “She's fine with this?” Ryu asked and looked at where Kyoko stood pouring coffee from a thermos.

Yukio looked at his girlfriend while he peeled an orange. Let his eyes linger on her if he was to be honest with himself. “Yeah, we're both fine.” He turned to face Ryu. “When we've learned more we'll want to be more active with the workshops, OK?”

“Sure,” Ryu answered and dove into his tablet again.

Yukio could see how Ryu was rapidly running out of ideas, and as he had no qualms about asking Noriko for help he did so in Ryu's stead. She just shook her head before she headed for her brother.

Yukio and Kyoko cleaned up after the break and with a wave to Noriko and Ryu they left with the trash. After that they needed to prepare the next station Noriko had planned.

***

When the camera crew took at short break Ryu called for attention and had his groups walk past the set. He made a show of sauntering over to Kuri and exchange pleasantries. In reality he asked her how Urufu was doing, but that wasn't what it looked like.

As an added bonus he received a few murderous stares from the male models, especially after Kuri saw through his ploy and gave him a friendly hug in the Swedish fashion he still had problems getting accustomed to. Urufu was just as bad and usually hugged people left and right when greeting them.

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Ryu high fived Kuri and made off with two groups before Noriko came up to Kuri and repeated the process. She got no murderous stares though, but Ryu felt rather certain a few of the crew leered at his sister. He'd seen her get her fair share of looks in school, and compared to what the models here wore she could as well have been undressed.

“That's my friend and she's off limits!”

Kuri's voice confirmed his suspicions and he turned, prepared to interfere. There was no need. How do you manage to look down on someone half a head taller than you? The next sight caught him by surprise, and he slapped a hand to his mouth to stop the laughter that was bubbling up. His larger than life midget sister copied Kuri's stance. Way to go sis! And you're even shorter than Kuri is.

“Gentlemen, let's proceed to the next station,” he said to the members of his two groups who stood studying the silent exchange between the girls and the models. “On our way there I want you to find a solution to the last problem, but this time the setting is Normandy a generation after the invasion of England.”

“Normandy?”

“You have your tablets. Look it up! Noriko will help you with locating any specifics you believe are needed.”

Running a walking talking session was more fun than he would have believed, and Ryu began to understand why Urufu put so much effort into them. By now it was clear that the problems themselves held less importance than the process of solving them. The answers, right or wrong, mattered little.

“I have a question about late eleventh century banking in Europe,” one man said.

Grinning Ryu waved his sister to him and had her help that group.

The next step would be harder. Collecting and understanding process data was beyond him. Urufu always did that work, and Ryu had noticed how even Kuri sometimes was left flabbergasted. You sure know your crap. I'll steal her from you but still keep you as my friend. How he would succeed with that was still an unknown, but solving social problems was what made him tick. In a sense he suspected he was a lot more similar to Urufu than he wanted to admit.

I'll need you after lunch. Kuri's busy so I guess I'll have Yukio get you down from our room. Ryu kicked some sand into the air and silently cursed Principal Nakagawa.

Around him the middle managers were occupied with the problem he had invented and this time both Yukio and Kyoko were able to participate. They had done a thorough reading on medieval Europe when Urufu forced the club to compare Heian era Japan with Saxon England less than two weeks earlier.

Noriko shone as usual. That day she had left Urufu laughing curled up in a ball when she caught him in some kind of error where he painted himself into a corner. Exactly what was so funny about it Ryu never understood, but she had made a conclusion that had Urufu laughing helplessly while at the same time giving her a look filled with admiration.

I can see why you're in love with him, but he's wrong for you. Too old and too cynical. And that thought had Ryu reflecting on his own feelings for Kuri. But she's not cynical, just awfully cold sometimes.

He admitted that Urufu and Kuri made a good pair, but Nakagawa's latest brainchild only served to drive them further apart. Now, there's a cold man. We're just tools to him. But I think he cares for us in his own twisted way.

Feeling depressed he wondered how his parents had gotten involved so closely with the principal. They were alumni of Himekaizen, Ryu knew that much, but Nakagawa couldn't have been their principal back then.

Gods! I need a nice chat out with some of the girls. Karaoke would have been nice. Damn, they should be on their way down from the camping site by now. He wondered who had taken command now that none of the founders of the club were present.

Caught up in his thoughts he almost missed their next station. It was a simple thing with foldable chairs and tables. A few bags held large sheets of paper, post-its and marker pens in different colours.

“This will be the last task before lunch,” Yukio said to the questioning faces looking at Ryu for instructions.

Thanks Yukio. It felt good knowing he had his back covered. Wingman. I think I understand what sis meant when she told me I need one to shine.

Kyoko helped her boyfriend setting up the tables, and Noriko quickly instructed the groups one after another.

“What's the point with this exercise?” For once it wasn't the old goat who had complained about just everything the entire morning, but the mid-thirties something Kuri had warned him of.

Ryu bent over the man's shoulder and resorted to more or less quoting Urufu. “Called retrospective. Basically four quadrants representing what worked, what didn't work, which processes should be used in the future and problems that need fixing.”

“And the purpose being?” the man said smiling. He didn't look malicious, just interested in a condescending way.

“It's a powerful tool for teams adhering to an ideal of continuous improvement. Primarily for processes,” Ryu said not knowing exactly what it meant. “If I'm unclear Noriko would be better for clarifying the underlying concept,” he continued and hoped it would be enough to let him off the hook.

She had heard him and came over. Sis, you're also covering for me. This gang is the best!

A short conversation between Noriko and the man told Ryu how much better she had grasped Urufu's teachings. Whenever it was a matter of knowledge she was brilliant in a way he would probably never become.

The time at the station ran to its end, and Ryu sighed with relief. Exhausted, he wouldn't have guessed how tiring it could be. The baking August heat didn't help neither, but he knew it also made the businessmen less alert in catching up on the errors he had been guilty of the last three hours.

Now he only needed to get them all to the dining hall, and that should buy them another hour. After that it was a matter of make or break with Urufu either handling the afternoon or staying like a zombie. Zombie would be bad, very bad.

Nakagawa, you bastard!